N'awlins

Interior Court of French Quarter RV Park

Monday, March 6…

Great location – we can walk to (and thru) the French Quarter and take the trolley if we need to go downtown (more on that tomorrow).  Good lunch at Acme Oyster House. Greg had charred oysters and I enjoyed an excellent crab cake on a bed of corn maque choux (mock chew). When I asked our server to enlighten me re maque choux, he brushed it off as "just a garnish." Admittedly, there wasn't a whole lot of it, but it was a very tasty compliment to the crab. The dish (corn, green pepper, & onion braised, then simmered and finished w/ red & black pepper) is believed to be a mix of Creole and Native American culture, and the name is probably the French version of its Native American name.

21st Century Downtown

Entering NO (over a bridge, of course)

Not being party animals, we made sure to miss Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Arriving in its wake was kind of interesting. The Oyster House still had a long line outside (as did Café du Monde – more on that later), but the streets are quiet. A lot of the French Quarter is in sad shape (not quite so obvious at night - there’s lots of music to distract you); other places have been beautifully restored. It is the oldest section of N'awlins. Uneven brick sidewalks, several lovely hotels that blend in architecturally, tons of bars, lots of “gentleman’s clubs” ranging from seedy to suave, funky little shops, and the muddy Mississippi. It’s a fun place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to live here.

Music Legends Park (busier,
but no live music)

Quiet on Bourbon Street

In sad shape now...

but it could look like this.

BlogThoughts... I mentioned awhile back how Mardi Gras is stretched out over a couple weeks in many southern cities. We learned today about Carnivál (which I naively thought was just the Brazilian name for Mardi Gras), but it's really the span of time between Jan 6 (Epiphany, arrival of the 3 kings/wise men, end of Christmas) and Ash Wednesday (beginning of Lent, time of sacrifice). So it's become the time to live it up before giving something up. Tonight I researched Carnival/Mardi Gras in New Orleans and was amazed at the complexity and detail. I can't begin to outline it all, but it makes fascinating reading. The building below struck me as a good "after the party" image.